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St. Joseph Medical Center, Tacoma
St. Clare Hospital, Lakewood
St. Francis Hospital, Federal Way
St. Anthony Hospital, Gig Harbor
Enumclaw Regional Hospital, Enumclaw
Franciscan Medical Group
June 18, 2007
State endorses St. Francis
Hospital’s plan to add beds, expand nursery care
St. Francis Hospital’s plan to add
36 beds and expand its capability to care for prematurely born
babies has been endorsed by the Washington State Department of
Health.
The state agency concluded June 12
that the Federal Way hospital had proven that there is a
community need for more beds in southeast King County to serve
medical and surgical patients, as well as a need for enhanced
nursery care.
"We are very pleased that the
state’s analysis confirmed what we’ve known for some time, and
we appreciate the very strong support that we have received from
the community," Syd Bersante, the chief operating officer at St.
Francis Hospital, said today.
"The Federal Way community has
grown by leaps and bounds since our hospital opened in 1987,"
she added. "We need to add patient beds and expand our nursery’s
care capacity in order to meet the health care needs of the
increasing number of people who live and work here."
Specifically, the state Department
of Health has:
- Agreed to allow St. Francis
to add 36 beds, which will raise the hospital’s total number
of licensed beds to 146. This is the first time the bed
total has increased since the hospital opened 20 years ago.
- Agreed to allow the Level 1
nursery to become a Level 2 facility, a designation that
will permit the nursery to provide care for infants born
four to six weeks prematurely and which have only minor
health complications. Currently, the nursery provides care
for healthy babies born at full term and those which are
born two to three weeks prematurely without health
complications.
A $27 million patient-care wing
will be built at St. Francis Hospital to house the additional
beds for medical and surgical patients. Construction is
scheduled to start in 2008 and be completed in 2009.
"Our commitment to the residents of
Federal Way and our neighboring communities is to provide the
best care possible, close to home," Ms. Bersante said. "Adding
patient beds and elevating the care capability of our nursery
will help us to better serve our patients and their families."
Since opening in 1987, St. Francis
Hospital has served an increasing number of patients. While the
hospital has added services and programs over the years, its
original license for 110 beds has remained unchanged even though
the city’s population has grown to more than 86,000. By
comparison, the population was about 58,000 when Federal Way
incorporated into a city in 1990 (three years after the hospital
opened).
St. Francis is the only hospital in
Federal Way and has about 900 employees.
The hospital submitted a 64-page
application to the state Department of Health last September
requesting permission to add beds and broaden its nursery care.
As part of their comprehensive analysis of need, Department of
Health officials conducted a public hearing at the Federal Way
Public Library in March that nearly 150 people attended. In
addition to the public testimony, the agency received more than
200 letters supporting the hospital’s need to expand.
Auburn Regional Medical Center and
the MultiCare Health System officially opposed St. Francis’
plans from the beginning. St. Francis officials encouraged both
organizations to accept the state’s June 12 approval of the
additional beds and expanded care for prematurely born babies.
"The state Department of Health has
conducted a comprehensive analysis and concluded that there is a
community need for additional beds and expanded nursery care at
St. Francis," Bersante said. "We are eager to put these
expansions into place and provide the level of care that our
community needs. We hope to proceed free of challenges from
organizations that are not based in the Federal Way community."
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Franciscan Health System
includes St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma, St. Clare Hospital
in Lakewood, St. Francis Hospital in Federal Way; Enumclaw
Regional Hospital in Enumclaw; St. Anthony Hospital in Gig
Harbor (opens in 2009); Franciscan Medical Group (a network of
primary care and specialty care clinics and physicians); and
Franciscan Hospice House in University Place. In addition to
medical, surgical and emergency care, the Franciscan
organization is the leading provider of cardiac and surgical
weight loss services in the South Puget Sound region. Franciscan
has received the 2007 Washington State Quality Award in
recognition of its high quality and performance excellence.
Franciscan is affiliated with Catholic Health Initiatives, one
of the nation’s largest non-profit health care systems.
Franciscan website:
www.FHShealth.org
Advanced Medicine,
Trusted Care
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